Run
by Monica-ISA
Summary: The war starts without warning and throws two people together. One shot, just something I thought about and wrote quickly. GM


_**Disclaimer**: Only the plot is mine…sad hey!_

_**Run**_

Ginny ran panting through the alley knowing that they were right behind her, the sound of their footsteps echoing deeply in her aching head. Worse than the throbbing was the fact that she had no idea where she was. Even though the broken architecture lying at her feet and the smells that surrounded her were vaguely familiar, she knew that she had been thrown widely off her apparition point when she deflected the last curse. She knew that last one had been close, that last one had almost caught her. So now she was running for her life with no prospects for rescue.

* * *

_Ron, Hermoine, Harry, Neville, Dean and her had been walking around Diagon Alley and decided to stop off for an ice-cream, opting to sit at the tables outside the shop front. The war had been threatening for the last three years and Harry and the others had starting to feel dejected, fighting only ongoing minor struggles and small skirmishes here and there, nothing that would win the war. They felt like they were sitting on edge constantly, always waiting for something to happen. The trio had been rushed through Auror training so that they would be ready for the all out war everybody was waiting for and had been expecting for years. When she had finished school, Ginny knew she wanted to join them but neither she, nor Dean and Neville, had been awarded the same level of confidence that her brothers friends had and they were progressing at the normal level of training. She was struggling to keep up with the amount of work the mentors were trying to push onto the new recruits, knowing full well that they would not learn half of what they needed before it all broke. _

_And it had. Before Ginny had a chance to laugh at a joke Dean's had made, an explosion had knocked her off her chair and onto the cobbled road beneath her. Her head was ringing and she hoped beyond belief that there had been some sort of terrible accident. But no, that was just wishful thinking, the pounding blasts proved it. The booming from other parts of town making the ground rumble and shake and the air thick with dust and the screams of people Ginny may not live to mourn._

_She heard Hermoine shout something but the sound was overpowered by the ringing in her head and so she sat up to see what was going on. Even with the dust flowing through the air and her vision obscured by rubble, she could see black forms begin to filter through the still visible street openings. She stood, pulling her wand out from its place in her belt and trying to see where she had heard Hermoine's voice. _

"_Ginny, get back to the Burrow," she heard Ron shout from behind her. _

"_Where are you?" she shouted, still rubbing the grit from her eyes and feeling moisture there. Pulling back her hand she saw it red and slick with blood, hers. She dismissed it just as quickly, deciding to deal with it later._

_Finally, she caught sight of the rest of the group, hiding behind a wall, wands flashing with curses when they caught sight of one of the black robed Death eaters. She made her way over to them and prepared herself to help defend._

"_No Ginny! Get back to the Burrow; warn Mum and Dad, please." Ron begged her but she didn't hear him, eyes wide as she flicked her wrist, the spell bubbling almost hysterically from her throat. "Stupefy!" and the black robed brute stopped dead and fell face forward and onto the ground with a hard thud._

_She finally found her voice, "No Ron. I want to stay here."_

"_Please Gin. They need to be warned." Ron pleaded again._

_She looked into his eyes, searching for any signs of pity but it was not here, only fear and pride hid in those depths._

"_Okay, I'll go." And she stood to apparate, clearly picturing her family home in her head and thinking good thoughts, trying hard not to splice herself in between. Just as she was about to go, she felt the power surge and then heard the curse project itself, and she stepped instinctively to the left, the apparition spell already started._

_

* * *

And so she had arrived in this dark secluded area of town; angry shouts telling her that she had been discovered almost immediately, the popping sound of her appearance obviously giving her away. And she had turned to run, not stopping to think of a good curse because there were too many of them. Now she felt like she had been running for hours, breath burning and tearing through her throat. Only fear and adrenaline forced her aching muscles to keep going, not to give up._

She knew it would not last much longer though, her legs were starting to tire, and she had begun to stumble more and more. She fell once and only the pictures of her friends relying on her kept her from just giving up and allowing them to catch up to her. And so she stood shakily and continued to run unsteadily through the broken buildings.

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, Ginny saw a death eater step out in front of her and before she had a chance to sidestep, she felt a hand grab her roughly by her upper arm and yank her into a small side alley. She began to struggle instantly and kicked and punched out against the strong, hard body she felt pulling her along. She pulled in a deep breath to scream and before she could let it out, her attackers' other hand attached itself firmly to her mouth.

"Trust me," he whispered into her ear and she felt his breath hot on her neck.

She stopped struggling immediately, not because she trusted him or that she was not scared out of her wits, but knowing that she needed to save her strength for when he did release her and she could make a break for it. Her wand was still in her hand but she did not dare to try to use it at the angle she was at now, she may hit herself.

And so they carried on this way for a few more minutes, Ginny trying to catch her breath while she was dragged backwards through waterlogged tunnels of debris. Finally after one fast half jump and a rushed tumble down some stairs, she found herself facing a doorway and then she was swung around and she heard the door close and lock behind her. She was then pushed gently onto a something soft on the floor and with a quick word from the stranger and a flash from his wand, she found herself unable to move or speak. And so she lay, helpless and afraid.

* * *

Ginny awoke with a start, trying to remember where she was and, when she remembered, how she had managed to fall asleep. She remembered the spell that had been put on her, and tried tentatively to move her aching legs. They moved, the spell had either worn off or her captor had released her magical bonds. A noise in the darkness alerted her to another presence in the room.

"…" she tried to speak but her voice just cracked. She swallowed, trying to wet her very dry throat, and tried again. "Hello?"

She saw a small light in the darkness flare into being but it was not bright enough to show the face of the man who had started to move towards her. Ginny gathered herself up, ready to attack if she felt threatened. But she didn't have to it seemed, the man reached out and handed her a glass with some liquid in, and when she didn't drink immediately he whispered again, "Drink!"

It was only one word but it froze her, she knew that voice, she knew who held her in this room.

"Malfoy?" she said, half questioning, half accusing. She brought up her wand and started a quick curse, only to be stopped again by his quicker one. Once again she could not speak, not move and the glass she held feel from her grasp with a thud.

"Please," he seamed to plead, "I won't hurt you."

He started to pace and then turned back to her, "If I release you to speak, you can't scream. If you do they may find us." And then walking to her, "Do you understand?"

She could not answer in any way but he seemed not to mind, running his wand in front of her and muttering a word.

Her throat tingled for a second and she said, "What do you want with me?"

"I don't want anything," he said, sighing and running his hand nervously through his soft looking blonde hair.

"Then let me go home?" she said, sounding more anxious than she wanted to.

"I will…but…"

"What." She said, forcing herself to sound angry.

"Not yet, it is too soon." He said lighting come more candles and sitting on a banged up looking chair.

Now that Ginny could see more of the room she was shocked. It looked like they were in a basement of some kind, there were no windows and the air was cold and dank. She was sitting and an old but clean looking mattress that was lying on the floor in the corner of the room. The only other furniture was the chair he was sitting on and a cupboard. A Hogwarts trunk sat next to the cupboard and some clothes could be seen neatly folded inside.

Eventually she built the courage up to ask, "What are you doing here Malfoy?"

"That's a long story," he said, sighing again deeply.

"Well, you kind of have a captive audience," she said, trying not to think of what was going to happen to her once his father got to her. He had proved once she was expendable.

He looked at her strangely, confused by her humour. He sighed again, making it three times in the last few minutes and seriously beginning to irritate her no matter her situation.

"At least you can talk to me until the rest of the death eaters get here," she said not caring what he thought of her this time, wishing he would just do something.

"I am NOT one of them," he spat, startling her by his vehemence.

"But I thought…" she started, confused.

"What, you thought just because my dad was a servant of that … that … monster, that I would just run and join the second I got out of school?"

"Well, yes actually!" she admitted, she thought it was very obvious.

"Well, I did... but it as a mistake." he said, standing up and pacing she small room, making Ginny a little dizzy. Her head must have taken more of a knock than she first thought.

"I must be a fool, because I always though it's what you wanted." She said with quiet sarcasm.

"No, I was the fool." He said softly, sitting down again.

"What do you mean?"

"I thought I was so special," he started, "A pureblood. So rich and popular, nothing could touch me. My father was so powerful and my mother so beautiful, I thought that's all life was about when I was young. I was the best, so my father had told me, I was a Malfoy, and so I was better than everybody."

"I was so sure of my superiority that I never questioned my father, I never thought for myself. He told me who I was, what I had to do, who I should befriend, what games to play and when I was older, who to bed for political gain. I knew I was going to be a Death eater, because that what I was told I would be. I knew that I would serve the Dark Lord, because that what my father wanted from me. Loyalty to that freak."

He held his head in his hands, still talking as if she were not there, "Then came the day that I had to actually join. I had been living the high life up until then, a year since I had left school. There had just been party after party, travelling and spending money as if I would never grow old. Even then I was still naive, I still thought I would join and then I would get a powerful job and become powerful like my dad, get married to a beautiful woman and … I don't know." He ended with almost a sob and then sat silently, running his hands through his hair and across his face, over and over again. Ginny was afraid to say anything. Or more honestly, she didn't want to in case he would stop telling her these things.

"I was such a fool, such a stupid child." He started again. "I still cannot believe I didn't see it."

He began to cry, not snivelling but just a few tears making two tracks down his down his cheeks, "I am sorry; I haven't spoken to anyone for so long. I have been hiding here for so long."

"I got my mark on a very cold night, I remember because our breaths puffed out in whiteness in front of us. I learned right away what was expected of me. I was lucky that first night that they didn't expect me to join in, just watch. Ha … that was bad enough. I grew up more in that one night than I had in 18 years. They were just random children, well, not really children. They were my age. The girls were raped and even some of the boys were raped. They were killed in ways no one could even imagine. I was numb by the time I got home, the mark on my arm still throbbing harshly and my mind screaming at me to react somehow."

"I sat on my bed for almost the whole day. That's how my mother found me and when she saw me, she smiled the most horrible smile. I tried to get away from her but she grabbed me and hit me. She kept hitting me and screaming and screaming, asking me what I had done. I didn't understand. She was so angry. When she stopped I realised I had never seen her show this much emotion, it was the first time she had raised her voice to me. It was the first time she had done more that said how good a boy I was. I began to cry and apologise, I spilled everything to her." Draco's voice rose and fell as he told his story, in sadness sometimes and anger.

"She explained everything to me, how my father had trapped her in law after law, keeping her magically bound to him and that it was too late for her, that she was lucky that my father left her alone. He had truly not seen her in years, she told me. He had starting looking through her, like a house elf and she was eternally gratefully for it. She told me that she thought I was lost, but that now that I had seen what I had and could see my father for what he was, I could escape."

"We spoke late into the night and we finally came up with a plan to get me away…" he was staring at Ginny now.

"We decided that I had to go to Potter and get him to trust me, I had to get out of the grip of my father and my getting into The Order was the only way for me."

He stood again, face anguished, "The next time my father was home, he gave me my first mission. I was so scared of him and so set in his ways that I must admit to being tempted to go and just do it. But I knew that there was no way I could, especially not when I knew who the target was. I was always the coward, not brave enough to stand up to anyone. Everyone who knew me knew that, so I didn't stick to the plan. So, instead of apparating to the place I would do my first errand for the Dark Lord or even going to Potter and his friends, I ran. I made it to Diagon Alley and I stood in an alleyway, stupidly watching the people walk past."

"I saw Professor Flitwick, and some hufflepuffs I recognised from school then I saw Harry and I knew I would never be able to approach him. Who was I kidding; he was walking with that Luna girl. They looked so happy, so free. I had caused so many people so much pain with my ignorance and I hated myself for that. I sneaked back home and packed a bag, I grabbed some money, and after wondering around a bit, I found my way here. Home sweet home!" His voice was lifeless.

He took a deep breath, "I have been here for almost a year and a half by myself. It has gone by so quickly because I spend so much time asleep. Its only by some potion or another that keeps me in a stupor long enough to hide from this mark on my arm." He lifted up his sleeve to expose some of the dark mark tattooed there. "He has tried so long to find me. I though he would have given up by now." He covered it up again. "I go out into town now and then, to get some food and look around. I have to cover up from head to toe, hiding myself. That's how I managed to be up there when it happened."

"I was walking and I heard the attack start. I knew what it was instantly, my mark burned worse than it ever had before and then the buildings started collapsing. I needed to get back here; to a potion to stop the pain, stop the calling. That's when I saw you. You were running down the alley as if devils were chasing you. I suppose to you it may have been just that, had they caught you. That's why I had to act. I knew what would have happened if they caught you."

When he stopped speaking, the silence was thick and stifling. Ginny kept hoping for him to say something else just so that she didn't have to. The silence suddenly became too oppressive for Ginny and she said the first thing that popped into there head.

"What now?" she asked.

"I will take you home." He replied.

"I can go alone if you let me." She said hurriedly.

"No, I will take you. It's time I began to do some good." He looked piercingly at her, "Do you trust me though?" He asked.

"Yes," she surprised herself by answering.

He looked shocked, "You do?"

"I would trust you more if you let me out of this spell. My arse is numb."

He gave her a small smile, and mumbled some words and with a wave of his wand, the spell dissolved and she rubbed the offending part of her body. When she looked up he was still smiling at her.

She saw now how much he had changed. The smile for one was new, having only ever seen him smirk or sneer, and it took her by surprise. She smiled back at him shyly, not knowing what to expect. His eyes widened and he looked quickly away and she continued to look him over while he prepared a bag. He was lean but all his movements were precise and mindful, not wasting a bit of energy on big and useless movements. His hair was longer, hanging around his face but not long enough to make him look feminine. His face too had changed; he no longer looked like a spoiled brat all pout and preen. He was what some of her friends would call deliciously handsome, not too pretty and not too rough. As she moved her eyes up his face, admiring the changes, he turned and caught her eyes with his.

Later Ginny would say that it was at this time that she fell for him, he seemed to search her soul, begging her for something she didn't know how to give. It was as if a storm had washed over her and she shook a little, goose bumps marking her skin. And he walked over to her, never letting his eyes leave hers and he put out his hand to help her up. She hesitated, just for a second, not wanting to admit that this sort of thing could be happening. Not believing she could feel anything but hate and loathing for a Malfoy. Not now, not ever. But she was feeling something and so she reached out and took his hand, keeping hold of it once she was standing. He didn't release her hand; he just pulled the bag onto his back and led her gently out the door, and back into the world.

* * *

Then burrow was a hive of activity as usual. Molly was directing people here and there while she cooked and made bandages and shouted at some errant soul or another. The family was doing what it did best when tragedy struck, keeping busy before it could fall apart.

It took some time before anyone noticed Ginny and Draco standing at the back door; Ginny crying while Draco held her hand so tight he felt he might break it but not able to let go. Mr Weasly was the first to see them, dropping the pile of plates he had been carrying.

"Ginny," he shouted, causing widespread silence as everyone's minds raced to catch up with what they had heard. And then pandemonium rang out as each of the brothers and house guests ran to into the kitchen.

Ron was the first person to notice who was at the end of Ginny hand, "Malfoy." He growled, whipping his wand from its place in his jeans belt and pointing it at him.

"No," Ginny shouted, and stood in front of Draco, before anyone could harm him.

"Move Ginny!" Ron shouted at her.

"No Ron, wait." She said, pushing the wand down. "He saved my life."

"Ginny, dear, come with me, you're hurt." Molly Weasly said and reached up to Ginny's head to look at the area she had bashed on the cobbles of Diagon Alley.

"No mum, not until you and everyone here promise me Draco will not be hurt."

"We can't just let him go, Ginny." Harry spoke up from his place beside Ron, wand raised at the blonde man.

"That's fine, just promise me you will not hurt him and remember that he saved me. He is not evil, Ron. He is not his father." She pleaded.

"Do you trust him, Gin?" Her father asked.

"Yes, I do," she said, looking back at him and giving him a reassuring smile.

"Okay then, we will take him to Dumbledore." Her father said, gesturing to Charlie and Bill to join him. "We will floo there."

And just like that, Draco was gone with the promise that he would be safe. She remembered suddenly how tired she was. She felt herself falling and being caught by Harry, who looked down sweetly at her, picking her up and carrying her to her bedroom where her mother began preparing for her healing. She did not remember anything after that, just darkness and dreams of being chased.

* * *

Ginny woke gently so the sound of shuffling noises. She was in her own bed and she could see the moonlight shining through her open window. She didn't have to wonder long who was in the room with her.

"Ginny," she heard her name called.

"Draco?" she answered, unsure how he could be there.

"Yes," he whispered and she saw him walk to her bed and sit on the edge.

"What are you doing here?" she asked sleepily.

"I came to see if you were alright." He said.

"How did you get here?" she asked suddenly worried about what her brothers or Harry would do if they caught him

"I have ways of getting around," he said, smiling and pushing her long red hair out of her face.

"But why?" she asked, confused.

"I.. I need to tell you the rest of the story." He said, frowning.

"Yes…" she prompted after he was still for a while

"I was watching you…I have always watched you." He said words sounding like they were breaking out of his mouth.

"When… what do you mean?" she said, sitting up.

"When I saw Harry that day I left my fathers, I saw you with them." He sighed wistfully, "I had watched you grow, from that first year, curious to what and how you would turn out after you berated me at Florish and Blotts." He smiled then, as if remembering.

"I think that each year you grew more beautiful and more confident, I grew to like you more and more. I admit to having been with many women, more beautiful and more voluptuous, but I have never seen anyone like you. So strong, so happy, so perfect in every imperfection. I think I grew to love you in my own little way. Of course, being Draco Malfoy, I would have nothing to do with you."

"I continues to watch you grow even after we left school and I left my fathers house. I would leave my little room under the stairs and come out, disguised, and hope to see you. I would watch you eat and drink and laugh, and towards the end, I would think of things that I might say that would make you laugh like that."

"But, I never saw you." She gasped.

"I know," he smiled at her again, taking her hand, "I'm glad you didn't, you would have hexed me." And she laughed.

"I must get back," he said, "I don't want them to think I ran away."

"Okay," she said and then quickly, "when will I see you again?"

"Soon I hope." And he leaned over and kissed her so gently she almost missed it, and then picked up a broom that had been leaning on her dresser and stepped towards the window.

"Draco," she whispered quietly, "can I ask you something?"

"Anything," he said, still standing by the window.

"What was your first assignment?" she whispered.

"You." He said. "My job was to kill you and you family."

And he took off into the night, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

fin


End file.
